Real Madrid coach Santiago Solari has made two relevant decisions ever since he took over the reins and was appointed as Lopetegui’s successor.
Right now, it looks like Isco will not be a relevant player for Solari, given that the Spanish midfielder came off the bench for the fourth straight game even now that Casemiro is not available and that Asensio isn’t performing particularly well.
Isco finds himself behind both Asensio and Ceballos in the rotation and that’s something quite shocking given how relevant he was for former coach Julen Lopetegui. It’s true that Isco isn’t in great form after missing a month due to surgery, but it will be hard for him to get in good shape without the minutes he needs. The Spanish midfielder might have a chance to feature in the lineup against Roma and will need to perform well to earn Solari’s trust.
Mariano was ready to play after recovering from the injury he picked up in El Clasico. Still, he didn’t even make the squad list and apparently he’s also behind Vinicius in the rotation. Mariano was a solid signing for Real Madrid and seems to be a nice player off the bench when Madrid need a scoring punch. He spent the this two-week FIFA break getting in shape and preparing himself for this La Liga match against Eibar yet he stayed in Madrid. Benzema has been playing well lately and while it will be extremely hard for Mariano to get chances to start, one has to think that he will be at least on the bench on a consistent basis sooner or later.
For the moment, both Mariano and Isco will have to keep working every single day because right now they are not in a good spot in Solari’s depth chart.